Stepping Up
by BearSent176
Summary: First Side-story to 'Out There, In Here'. It's not long after Kim disappeared and some people are not handling her disappearance very well. Time for them and others to step up. And we see the beginnings of how a Sidekick began the path he was on.


Stepping up

(A Side Story to Out There, In Here)

**Hello there to those who read this tale and welcome from the team of BearSent176. Join us as we stir the pot, so to speak, regarding our first multi-chapter story, 'Out There, In Here', with a few side-stories related to the comings and goings which took place 'just off the stage' from the main tale and shaped the characters on display in the larger narrative.**

**How Ron 'came to be the young man on display?', 'Why is GJ so hot and cold with him?', 'Is this a RonBon tale?', are among the questions we've fielded in Reviews or PM's since posting the first chapter. And of course these and other questions abruptly teased Larry's fertile Plot Bunny Farm into action and this tale is the first of several he dreamed up. There are a couple more of them in development and they will be delivered for your entertainment as timing allows.**

**And they will indeed 'splain a couple of sitches that will become more apparent as our main story rolls along.**

**But for now, here's the first side-story, 'Stepping up', which we hope will give an idea of who did and just how they began to do so. And it begins when you start to read…**

I

The recently, albeit reluctantly, appointed Captain of the Cheer Squad stood there, staring at her rival's locker when Mrs. Andrea Parker's comments brought her out of her pained funk.

"Miss Rockwaller we simply must remove Miss Possible's personal effects from her storage locker and return them to her next of kin."

"No!", Wide-eyed, Bonnie shrieked, "You can't that! Possible might come back any minute!", her voice caught. "And don't you dare to refer to her that way. She can't be dead…She can't be…", the brunette's voice trailed off into a whisper.

"She's been gone for three months Miss Rockwaller, we must face the possibility that Kim Possible may never return from wherever she's gone off to."

"DON'T you **dare** act like she's dead.", Bonnie straightened up and shouted, "She's not… she's not…", the brunette now almost hysterical.

Then coming to the realization that, One: she had just crossed the line with a high ranking member of the high school staff, and Two: the bitter rivalry she had for so many years with the redheaded heroine of Middleton High may indeed be over, Bonnie collapsed against the wall near Kim's locker.

The new head of the Middleton High School Cheerleaders teared up at the thought. _'I baited you and snarked at you for years, so why is this so hard?', _Bonnie desperately lamented to the 'ghost' of the redhead's locker.

"Damn you….", the red-ringed teal eyes teared up again.

"Bonnie I know this is hard, but we have to deal with this and get some closure so that we can move on. We will always have memories of her, but we have to do this, ok?", the Counselor for the Female MHS students gently asked Bonnie.

Drained, Bonnie sagged back down to the bench and nodded.

Mrs. Parker then opened the door and motioned for several others to enter. "Girls? Please take Bonnie somewhere to relax and unwind. This has been very hard for her and I'm sure for all of you as well. I'm so sorry about all this but it has to be done."

Bonnie spoke as a blue-eyed platinum blonde approached. "OK, I'll leave but you are **not** taking Possible's things out of here in a garbage bag. She was a hero _dammit_, not a person living on the streets. She saved peoples' lives and deserves way better than that."

Then reaching into her locker, "Here, you can have my gym bag, we owe her that much dignity.", Bonnie croaked as she pulled the bag out and handed it over to the older woman who nodded in return.

"Come on Bonnie let's take the squad out somewhere. We need to get away from all of this drama and hang out, just us girls. Ok?", Tara coaxed her friend as Hope, Liz, Jessica and Crystal came over to help.

Grabbing Bonnie's coat, Tara led her longtime friend out the door and into the nearly deserted hallway, on their way to the front doors of the high school.

"Come on B we need some ice cream.", Liz offered, nodding to another, "Crystal will buy."

"Thanks a lot red _head_.", Crystal told Liz while leading their friend further away from the locker room of their discontent.

Hope broke from group when she spotted the one person she felt needed to be included in this sojourn. "Girls I'll be right behind you, keep on going."

Tara smiled as her eyes followed the Chinese-American girl to another 'member' of their group._ 'Good idea girl, he will help a lot.',_ she approved as she kept Bonnie in motion towards the main doors of the school.

When Hope reached her 'target', she grabbed his nearer arm. "This way Stoppable, you're coming with us.", she ordered, interrupting Ron as he was closing his locker for the day.

"Huh, what's up Hope?", came the startled reply from the young man as her small hands latched onto his forearm.

"The Squad has a meeting Stoppable.", she told him.

"Squad? Cheer Squad?", he asked. Seeing her nod he objected, "But I'm not on the squad, I'm the mascot... Remember?"

"Bull! You're a member of the squad and don't you ever forget that."

"I am not on the Squad. When has my picture been taken with the squad?", Ron snapped.

"Listen Kim always said you were on the Squad so you are.", Hope countered.

Sigh "That was dirty.", Ron muttered, "Alright, you win, you know I can't say no to KP...", his voice caught, "Not now." Ron said as he looked over to the group leaving the building.

"What's going on anyway?"

"Bonnie's losing it. She needs help and I think you're the only one who can calm her down."

"Me? Why doesn't Brick do it?"

"Cause Brick's a clueless dummy, that's why."

"Hey, Brick's a nice guy…and a lot bigger than I am… And he'll kick my butt if she sees me doing anything with his girlfriend he might misunderstand.", Ron countered automatically.

"Yeah, but his folks had it right when they named him Brick.", she shook her head in exasperation. "Three months now and he still doesn't have a clue about anything being wrong with Bonnie after…you know.", she hesitantly said to Ron's nod.

"Anyway, get a move on, you can ride with me. But don't worry about Bonnie's boyfriend, we'll take care of him.", Hope promised.

"What about my scooter?"

"I'll bring you back to pick it up unless you want me to drive you home, your choice Ron."

"Just bring me back to school after we're done. I can do my homework later.", the blond teen replied, _'Darn it GJ has me going out tonight to track some drug dealers and bust em. Well this started out as a crappy night...might as well add to it.'_

Trying to make conversation after they got into her car, "You never mentioned much about that school that you went to in Japan. What was it like?"

"Huh?", Ron replied, startled as his mind was a thousand miles away, "Oh that...it was different. I had to go back over during Christmas break."

"You did? Nobody mentioned that. Why didn't they send someone else? Mr. Barkin could have selected someone else."

"Yeah he could have, but Yamanouchi, he and my 'rents thought it would be best for everyone if only one guy from Middleton suffered from continuous jet lag. I guess since I had so much experience with K...K...KP.", Ron stammered out.

"Besides, you ever hear about Steve Barkin ever doing things the easy way? When I brought up that someone else could go, I got one of his 'motivational' speeches as a result.", Ron laughed lightly recalling it, while Hope snorted in reply, having received one of those 'speeches' from Barkin in the past.

"I'll bet...Uh you really miss Kim don't you?"

"Yeah, I do...I'm sure you're familiar with how we met up at Pre-K by now.", Hope nodded. "So we've been best buds practically our entire lives. Heck, I spent more time at her house than my own." A wistful smile graced his face for a few moments.

Followed by an angry grimace, "Then in spite of this being common knowledge, the media had the audacity to suggest that I had _ulterior_ _motives_, wanted her out of the way and _killed_ her...and, and hid her body.", he sighed while averting his eyes.

"Well those people are morons, Ron! They only look for the next sensational 'Story' to get their ratings up, the truth be damned. Heck, many of those 'reputable' media outlets have been caught making up their 'facts' to backup their own agendas. I'd ignore them if I were you. I certainly do.", Hope reassured him.

"I guess so. At least they stopped poking around my or Kim's houses, and they quit following me around to school. It was really starting to tick me off the way they would stalk around just to get something to feed an angle they wanted to sell to the public as fact.", he shook his head in annoyance.

"I had Wade keep an eye out for me to warn me about them waiting to ambush me wherever I went the first week after Kim disappeared.", he said to a knowing nod from his 'chauffeur'.

"Yeah, and as a result of Wade looking out for you, the school finally found out who was trashing your locker. Barkin suspended that bunch or idiots for a week, so I don't think you'll have that problem again.", Hope smiled as she remembered all that went down after Kim vanished.

"Well yeah, but I wish that Wade or I could stop the mail, it's sorta freaking Mom out.", Ron frowned.

"Mail? What's going on about the mail?"

Rubbing the back of his neck with a hand, "Well I've been getting all kinds of hate mail since those wonderful _guardians_ of the First Amendment breathlessly announced their _fact-proven_ theory that 'Don Stuckable killed Kim Possible. After that trash hit the airwaves, our local Post Office was more than happy to send me _allll_ the crap they received that remotely looked like it was directed at me…"

Then tapping a finger on his chin, as if in deep thought. "Though I must say, it makes pretty good kindling for the fireplace."

"But why are they sending you that stuff?"

"I guess some of the _smart_ Neo-Nazis out there figured out that I was a _Jewish_ boy and in a 'too-close-for-comfort-for-their-tastes' relationship with Kim, a 'pure' white girl. All it took was for them to use those 'facts of their convenience' provided by the media and _convict_ me of doing _unspeakable_, in their minds, things with a girl of 'pure' race and then killing her to hide the evidence." Hope's jaw dropped at this revelation.

"A couple of them got arrested for trying to burn a cross on our lawn. Something about Kim being gone was part of some worldwide Jewish plot or something…" Her eyes now opened wide in shock at this tidbit from Ron.

Then looking pensive. "I've never seen Officer Hobble so pissed…. "Shaking the memory away. "But after that night we've never had anymore trouble like that..", he assured her then added, "After that night I learned that Hobble's Great Uncle went through some of the Camps with Patton."

Hope slammed on her brakes, "**What**?" Luckily for them there was no traffic on the road at the time.

"You never heard?", Ron asked seeing Hope shake her head, "Hope, sweetheart, you have to realize that the world isn't always a nice place. KP and I knew this from all the crime fighting that we'd been doing, but much of it is below the surface of what is known to the public. There's a lot of stuff going on out there that you just don't realize or could imagine in your wildest nightmares."

"We should tell the other girls..."

Cutting her off, "No don't do that, I don't want my troubles to bother you guys."

"But they should know..."

"Hope, I don't want that stuff to weigh anyone down any more than they already are right now. It's my burden to carry and that's what I will do; it's what I do. Besides who'd believe the buffoon has troubles to bear or tears to shed?"

Then changing the topic, "So anyway, where are we going?"

"Just a few more blocks, but don't think I'm going to forget what we talked about, Ok? I won't say anything, but you **owe** me." Hope took her last shot at the topic.

"Thanks.", the blond boy gratefully smiled.

Exiting the car, they entered the ice cream parlor. "There they are.", Hope pointed and pulled Ron over to the 'Team' meeting.

Slowly approaching the emotionally distraught brunette, Ron cautiously asked, "Bon-Bon how are you doing?"

"Bite me loser.", Bonnie snapped back.

"That good huh, well I'd love to sweetheart, but that's something for another time.", he kidded, "Though I think you'd rather have Brick take care of that."

The blond teen was pushed into the booth alongside the brunette with another the red head close behind. Once the rest of the girls sat down Ron asked, "This is all nice and comfy ladies, but why am I here? I don't fit in with you guys.", he looked around.

"Shut your trap Stoppable and put your arm around Bonnie like you did me last week.", Liz ordered from the other side of the booth. "Bonnie put your head on his shoulder and relax."

The Squad Captain and the Buffoon did as they were ordered and it didn't take long for the Queen B of Middleton High to let it all out on the Mascot's shoulder. Ron then motioned for the other girls to move to a different table to give them some privacy. After they had done so he began to talk softly to her. She, in turn, replied while trying to compose herself.

Now that Bonnie had begun talking to the blond boy, Tara pulled out her phone and called a number from her directory. After speaking to the other party for a couple of minutes she broke the connection and sat back, keeping an eye on the door to the ice cream parlor with a knowing smile on her face.

While the platinum blonde kept watch on the door she handed some cash to Hope, "Get me and Bonnie a hot fudge sundae please. I need to stay here and make sure there are no misunderstandings."

"What kind of misunderstandings Tara?", the Chinese-American cheerleader asked.

The door to the parlor suddenly opened and a much larger familiar blond rushed in, his head on a swivel, searching for something, or someone.

Pointing at the human guided missile in their midst, "That kind. Man he's fast. C'mon girls, give me a hand here.", Tara sang out as she rushed to intercept Brick after he acquired target-lock on his 'quarry'.

X

"You see Bonnie, I really don't think KP is dead...She's just lost somewhere.", Ron paused.

"How do you know?", came the tearful question.

Sigh, "I've known her so long that somehow deep inside I think I'd know.", Ron tried to explain, "You see whenever I was near her I always felt warm inside. So I think that if she wasn't out there somewhere", waving out into the surrounding distance and then pointing to his heart, "in here I would have a cold hole where that warmth would be. I mean I think I would just feel empty...lifeless."

"So what are you saying?", she asked tearfully.

"I think that somehow this will work out. Someday we'll find her and bring her back home…And maybe this is a way for the Big Guy to give you your shot. You know if KP didn't go to school here you'd be the hero or the Top Dog instead. Ya never know, and maybe things for all of us will be better soon.", Ron softly reassured the trembling girl.

"Yeah maybe you're right. I really hope it will.", she sobbed. Then, without any warning Bonnie wiggled into Ron's lap and laid her head on his shoulder. Her shoulders shook as Ron softly caressed her back.

"Don't worry it'll get better. We're all here for you B.", Ron comforted her.

"Even Brick?"

"Even Brick."

"He's so oblivious.", she snorted through a sob.

"This is hard for any guy, you know that? Give him a chance, he'll come around."

X

"What the hell is Stoppable doing with Bonnie?", Brick Flagg hissed after watching the last couple of seconds of the exchange he couldn't hear between his girlfriend and Ron.

Two pairs of small hands grabbed each arm, "Come with us buster. Ron's doing something you can't, so give him a few minutes, ok?"

At the protests she saw coming, "Don't worry, he's not trying to date your girlfriend.", Tara hissed back at him as several cheerleaders pulled the shocked All-State Quarterback into another corner.

"But why is she sitting in his lap?", the incredulous boyfriend asked.

"I don't know, but I don't think Ron invited her. And look Brick, she's not kissing him, ok? It's just that Bonnie's been a basket case lately, crying and being a total mess, and Ron's trying to help her so give them a couple of minutes.", Tara told him.

X

"Are you feeling better?", Ron asked as he looked up past Bonnie and saw Brick and several of the girls warily watching them.

"Brick's here.", he said, "Do you want to go to him?"

Nodding Bonnie replied, "I haven't been a very good girlfriend to him lately. I guess I need to apologize."

"Maybe not apologize, but talking might be a good start for you two.", Ron told her as he motioned for Brick to come over keeping the brunette's attention on him instead of her boyfriend.

"Bonnie?", Brick asked, "Are you alright?"

Sniff, "Yeah.", and she got off Ron's lap and into Brick's arms by the side of the booth.

"Thanks Brick, I think she'll be alright now. I'll see you guys later.", Ron looked at Brick to take the hint and let him out of the booth, "Uh big guy I have to be somewhere, do you think you can take my place? I sorta have to leave."

"Uh, sure Stoppable and thanks.", the blond Quarterback replied, moving to the side to let Ron out; taking his place in the booth when the smaller blond walked away.

"See you guys.", Ron waved as he made for the door.

"Do you need a ride back to school?", Hope called out as Ron reached the door.

"Nah, we're only a mile from there, I can walk. See ya in the morning.", Ron replied as he walked out the door and into the night.

XXX

"OK Stoppable, you have the wire and the cash. Make the buy then give us the code word... we'll take them down when your 'buy' provides us with the evidence we'll need to successfully prosecute.", Agent Simon Rink instructed his charge, knowing full well he was sending the teen into a dangerous situation above what said teen was 'known' by his Superiors to have been trained for.

He was also quite aware this was being done under the express instructions and orders of the Leader of his Agency.

"Still sounds dangerous the way you plan on doing this.", Ron replied.

"It needs to be done this way so we can get what we need to take them down. And for some reason these people just don't think you're any kind of threat to them, which makes it easier to pull this off.", the Agent told him.

"OK, I'm ready let's go."

XXXX

And of course the necessary disclaimer to keep from feeding the Lawyers: We make no money from the creation of this little tale. The characters of the Kim Possible TV Show are the property of the Disney Corporation; we're just taking them for a pro-bono ride. All others not a part of the Mouse Ears Dynasty are the creation of our little partnership or their own selves, owned by someone else. If that is possible.


End file.
